


Together

by Punzel23



Series: Taking a Break [1]
Category: The Good Doctor (TV 2017)
Genre: Claire Browne and Neil Melendez, F/M, Melendaire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:28:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25226833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Punzel23/pseuds/Punzel23
Summary: Sequel to "Taking a Break"
Relationships: Claire Browne/Neil Melendez
Series: Taking a Break [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1827649
Comments: 21
Kudos: 49





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to all of those who commented on "taking a break" and for those who wanted a sequel :).

By the time that they got finished up, it was nearly 2 am and they were all exhausted. Neil, Claire and Alex walked out together. Claire was parked the closest, so she said goodnight as they came to her car. Neil wanted to say more but couldn’t with Alex with them too. He walked to his car which was across from where Alex parked so there was no opportunity to wait until he left. It was too late to call Lexie, that would have to wait until tomorrow which made it feel like the rest of his life was on pause as well.

Morning came quickly and soon enough they were back at the hospital. Neil felt as though the longer it took the more opportunities for this to slip from his fingers. They had surgery scheduled for first thing this morning, but it was running behind due to another surgery that had taken longer than expected.

“This is ridiculous,” he said as he tried to book a different operating room. The delays along with the anticipation were making him agitated and it wasn’t going un-noticed. 

“I’m going to go let the patient’s family know we’ll start soon,” Alex said looking for an excuse to get away for a minute. 

“You ok?” Claire asked concerned

“I’m fine. I just need to get this surgery started” he said as he huffed finally getting the operating room to show confirmed. Looking up he could see Claire wasn’t convinced and now she was probably starting to doubt what they had talked about if she wasn’t already.

“Sorry,” he said calming himself. I am just ready to get this taken care of” he leaned against the desk.

Claire nodded, “I’m not going anywhere” she smiled, and he felt more at ease. She knew how much he hated the waiting in any process. 

“Good. You ready to do this?” he asked with a wink.

“Here we go” she smiled.

Their surgery went well, and the rest of their day was busy which made it pass quickly. He was on his way out and trying to find Claire, but she was stuck in a conversation with Morgan who was explaining an issue with a patient. “Have a good night” he said as he walked past them. 

“Good night Doctor Melendez” Morgan smiled as she went on explaining. Claire gave him a please save me look and said ‘Goodnight.’

Neil called Lexi after leaving the hospital to see if he could stop by so they could talk. It wasn’t a conversation he looked forward to but one he needed to have in order to move forward. He didn’t want to give Claire any reason to think he was doubting things.

Lexi asked for answers as it felt so out of the blue for her. He explained that his heart still belonged to someone else and he wasn’t ready to move forward. He didn’t want to give her any false hope that this could be headed somewhere that it wasn’t. They talked for a little while and he got back into his car and sat back in the seat. That was draining. Especially after the past couple of days. It was late and time to head home.

He pulled out and although he intended on driving home, he winded up at Claire’s apartment complex. Before he really realized what he was doing he was already at her door and about to knock. This was crazy. It was late. What if she was asleep? If he was going to do this he should have texted her first. He turned around and started to leave when the door opened.

“Neil?” Claire asked seeing him walk away.

“Hey” he turned and smiled. “I um, thought I’d stop by, but, uh, then it seemed late and I probably should have called first so I didn’t..” he rambled as he tried to explain. Claire stepped out of the door way and stopped him with a kiss. Her back was quickly against a cold brick wall as he kissed her back with the same hungry passion. It only broke so that they could come up for air. 

“Maybe we should take this inside, I’m not exactly dressed” she grinned as he looked down at her emerald green satin nightgown that fell about mid hip. She kissed him again as she grabbed his hand and led him inside quickly turning to face him again as she moved to unbutton his shirt. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around him leaning down and kissing his neck as he carried her to the bed. He turns so that he falls back on the bed, leaving her on top. There was something exciting and freeing knowing that this was more than just a heated night of passion. There wasn’t long term talk, or how they’d handle things at work, tonight was a re-acquaintance after weeks of putting up walls.

The next morning, they were due back at the hospital early and they woke up late. He didn’t pre-plan any of this and didn’t have any extra suit to wear. 

“We’re so going to be late” Claire shook her head.

“So, I guess if we want to shower it should be together to save time?” he asked with a mischievous grin.

“I guess so” she smiles as they head into the bathroom. “It’s got to be quick though” she added with a laugh

“I’m a surgeon, precision is my specialty,” he told her following quickly into the shower.

He offers her a ride, but she tells him it’s probably best if they drive separate, especially given he is wearing the same suit as yesterday.

Claire got in first and headed into the lounge where Park started to explain his theories on how to handle cases.

Neil casually walked into the hospital. “Morning” he greeted Andrews as he stepped onto the elevator.

“Is that the same suit from yesterday?” Andrews asked noticing the crispness to Neil’s attire wasn’t there as it normally was.

“You creeping on me Andrews?” Neil laughed

“Must’ve been a good night” Andrews raised his eyebrows.

“Morning isn’t too bad either” Neil grinned as he stepped off on his floor.


	2. Chapter 2

The ER was short, so Shaun and Alex drew the short straw and had to go down to assist. That left Claire to assist Melendez and Morgan to assist Andrews. Did Neil change the number behind his back to ensure that Claire was on his service today? Possibly. He swore to himself it wouldn’t be a regular occurrence, just today.

Claire sat on the sofa in the lounge looking into a patient’s symptoms. 

“Come up with anything?” Neil asked as he walked into the room.

“Ehh. I’m not sure” she replied rubbing her head.

He sat down in the chair beside the couch and took the laptop to look at the screen.

Claire begins to explain to him what she thought it could be. She got up to show him the scans on the iPad and leaned over him to show where on the screen she was reading about a procedure.

Did she always get this close? He wondered to himself as she explained what her thoughts were.

“Do you know what I mean?” she asked looking over at him, her face dangerously close to his.

“Um” he titled his head slightly

She looked at him again. “Are you paying attention?” she asks

“Yeah, sorry. You were just, close. And..” he answered

“Oh no… we can’t go there” she chastised him as she then leaned across him essentially putting her chest directly in his face.

“You’re teasing and it’s not nice” he replied back

“I wouldn’t dare Dr. Melendez” she said as she took her seat back on the couch.

Hearing her phone buzz she looked down, “blood work is ready” she said getting up. 

“I’ve got to go downstairs; I’ll walk with you” he says as she opens the door.

Claire heads towards the elevator.

“Want to take the stairs?” he asks with a twinkle in his eye.

“Sure” she smiled

No sooner than the door shut behind them, his mouth was on hers with a hungry passionate kiss that she equally returned. He pulled back and grinned, “Ok, I think now I can make it”

“Oh great, get me all stirred up” she rolled her eyes and laughed.

They forgot how much they enjoyed just working together and tossing ideas about diagnosis back and forth. The day went fast but felt very productive, even if they were at time distracted by each other.

“Want to grab some dinner?” he asked as they walked out of the hospital

“Um, I don’t know” she sounded reluctant

He was surprised by her answer and at first unsure of how to take it.

“Ok, maybe another night” he forced a smile.

She nodded and they walked towards the parking lot.

They got to her car and he paused for a moment, “Good night” he said as she unlocked the door.

She took a step towards him, “Good night?” she asked tilting her head to the side

He gave her a confused look.

“You’ve teased me all day long and think you get away with a goodnight?” she asked saucily

“I thought you didn’t want to get any dinner” he replied

“Yeah, but I didn’t say I wasn’t up for dessert” she grinned.

“Oh f*ck” he says in a whisper

“That’s what I had in mind” she says leaning in so her warm breath is on his ear.

He closes his eyes to focus on not pushing her against the car right now and kissing her.

“I’ll um, see you shortly” he smiles as he picks up the pace to get to get to his car.

Clothes were coming off as soon as they reached the inside of the door.

“Today felt like the longest day ever” he said as he kissed his way down her neck.

“Oh, I know. Especially after your stairwell stunt” she laughed

“You liked it, don’t deny it” He replied kissing her lips

“I’ve thought about a few places I’d like it there” she replies as he carries her to the bedroom

Neil raises his eyebrow. 

“Tell me” he says as he kisses her down her stomach

“I believe we have had this conversation” she laughs

“We had a conversation of where you had thought about doing it but never said where you’d want to” he replies

“Hmmm” she says as he finds his way down to where her ache is.

“Neil” she moans 

He is determined to pace himself but hearing her moan his name like that drives him crazy.

“Tell me” he says flicking his tongue over her wet core.

“Uh. Um” she says distracted and trying to think. “The balcony, an empty room, the MRI room…” she says naming a few.

“mmmmm” he hums with his lips pressed against her.

“F*ck! Neil” she growls with a strong desire

“So impatient” he teases

“Where are you places?” she asks trying to pace herself.

“MRI room, Balcony, my desk, the elevator” he says naming a few areas that come to mind. 

“You desk?” she asks wanting to hear more

“Yeah” he grins as he kisses her breast before flipping her over to her back

“My desk” he whispers in a low sexy voice in her ear.

He then takes the tip of her tongue and licks her spine from mid back to her neck.

“I’d love to turn you around” he explained as he lifted her hips “and f*ck your hot p*ssy from behind” he tells her as he does exactly that.

“MMMM yes baby” she moans.

“Then, I’d lean you back against the desk, wrap your legs around me and f*ck you so hard” he says as he flips her back over and puts her legs on his shoulders

“Yes baby, Oh that feels so good” she says grabbing the sheets. “Don’t…. stop…” she pleads as she feels so close.

He obliges and keeps going until they both can’t take anymore.

“Oh, that was… mmm” she grins

“Yeah. It’s warm in here” he chuckles

“So, you wanna know what I’d do after you f*cked me hard on your desk?” she asked with a grin

“What?” he replied eyebrows raised.

“I’d get you back in your chair, and I’d ride your d*ck so good” she said straddling him as she leaned down and whispered in his ear.

She sat up and took his hands placing them on her breast as she slid his d*ck inside her and began to rock her hips creating a warm friction.

“OH yes” he moaned

“You’ll need to have blinds placed on the windows though” she grinned

“Putting them on order in the morning” he replies as he flips her over to regain control.

It’s going to be a long night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trials of working in a hospital with your ex...

Neil put I a request for blinds, but Audrey wouldn’t approve it. 

“No other office has full on blinds” she replied when she handed him back the request.

“Maybe they should” he replied

Claire laughed when he complained to her about it.

“What’s funny?” he asks

“That you thought they were going to let you get them” she chuckled.

Walking over to the bookshelf to grab a journal there was a framed picture that caught her eye. She had seen it once before, in his car. 

“Why does this look so familiar?” she said studying it.

He looked guilty when she turned to look at him.

“Remember my friend James in Las Vegas?” he asked

“Yeah” she answers

“Apparently he saw us out one night and took that picture. You can’t see that it’s us, but I had it printed. I’ve gotten lots of compliments on it” he explained.

“And every time you look at it you think about our dirty little secret?” she laughed.

“Well” he grinned. “Those blinds would come in really handy right now” he grinned.

“They would, but we agreed that we couldn’t at work” she replied looking up from the journal.

“I can dream though” he said biting his lip as he looked at her causing her to blush in response. 

“Well the quicker we figure this out, the quicker we can get to that” she smiles.

They were very cautious when at work to stay as professional as possible after all, it wasn’t an ideal situation for an Attending to date a Resident. For the time being they kept it low key, although outside of work they were almost inseparable.

Claire felt that Dr. Lim watched her more than usual and was more likely to push back against any idea Claire had as opposed to Morgan, Alex or Shaun. She did her best avoiding the topic with Neil for the most part until the day she was doing some research on a case and Neil asked what was bothering her.

“Nothing.” She replies as she continues to scan through a journal.

“There’s something” he says sitting down in a chair at the table.

“Does Dr. Lim know about us?” she asks abruptly

“No. At least not to my knowledge” he answers

“Hmm” she says going back to the journal

“Why do you ask?” he asks

“She’s just been acting... Odd. And she’s much more critical of anything I say or do that anyone else.” Claire explains

“You’re a fourth year, she’s probably just turning up the heat some to encourage you to continue to grow during residency.” He shrugs

“So you’re saying it’s in my head” she says as she stops looking at the journal.

“No, I’m saying that maybe it’s being mis-interpreted.” He tries to explain.

“I knew I shouldn’t have said anything to you” she rolls her eyes

“What do you want me to do Claire? Go in there and ask her?” he says defensively

“God no. I was just answering your question but you don’t have to pass it off like it’s all in my head when I’m well aware of the difference in pushing someone towards growth and just being nitpicky” she says shutting the journal and getting up to put it away.

“I’ve got to go find Shaun” she says as she leaves the lounge.

Claire gets ready to leave the hospital when she sees Neil coming down the hall in scrubs.

“Hey” he smiles, “I’ve got an emergency surgery, so I’ll be late. Here’s a key though so you can get into my place he says as he tries to hand it to her.

“Actually, I have some things I need to do so I was thinking about just staying at my apartment tonight” she replies

“I’m sorry about earlier. You’re right, I should have listened” he tells her still holding the key

“It’s fine, I just really do have some things to take care of and since you’ll be in surgery it’s a good time” she explains.

Neil nods.

“Good luck with your surgery” she smiles. “I’ll see you tomorrow”

“Goodnight” he replies as he watches her turn to leave, the key still in his hand.

Claire spends the evening cleaning up her apartment and straightening things for upkeep. She hasn’t been staying there much recently. It was quieter than she remembered. She glanced at her phone to see if Neil had texted but there wasn’t anything there. 

Neil finished up the surgery and saw Audrey on the way out.

“Hey” she says noticing his long face

“How was your surgery?” she asks

“Good, long” he says with a tired laugh.

‘Wanna grab a burger?” she asks

“Um” he thinks for a second not wanting to dig this hole he’s in with Claire any deeper but also considering that saying no will make Audrey more suspicious if she is already, “yeah, why not” he agrees

They grab a burger and some beers which then turns into some whisky and before they realize it a few hours have gone by. 

“This was fun, we shouldn’t have so much time between these,” she says with a laugh.

“Very true” Neil says as their glasses clink again.

Around 11 pm Claire checked before heading to bed but nothing. She thought he’d tell her how the surgery went. Claire wasn’t the type to stay angry and didn’t want him to think that she was so she gave in and texted him.

“Hey, hope your surgery went well (emoji heart). I’m headed to bed, goodnight” she hit send. She waited a couple minutes to see if maybe he’d respond, but no. 

Neil and Audrey sat at the bar with some water trying to let themselves sober up before driving. They swapped some recent patient stories and laughed about old times. It was nice. 

Neill looked at his watch, “it’s already 11:30, where’d the time go” he laughed

“Oh wow. Yeah” Audrey said shaking her head. “You know, we could always go back to your place and finish our whiskey” she offered

Neil laughed nervously. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea” he says with a smile

“Why not? Just as…friends” she shrugged wondering if he’d admit to something between him and Claire.

“For starters, you’re the Chief of Surgery” he joked

“Yeah, but we’ve been down that road before” she raised her eyebrows.

“True, and remember how it turned out?” he chuckled trying to lighten the mood.

“Ok, but you’re missing out” she winked

“I’m sure I am” he said taking a big drink of water.

Getting to his car he pulls out his phone to check it and sees a missed text from Claire at 11pm. 

“Damn it” he mutters as he unlocks the phone

“Just saw this, sorry… the surgery went well. Have a good night, or morning J” he types before starting the car and heading home.

His bed feels colder than what he’s used to. He tosses and turns a little before being able to fall asleep. The next morning, he wakes up with a hangover. All that whisky probably wasn’t a good idea.

Walking into the hospital he hopes to run into Claire but instead is bombarded with information from Andrews about a couple of different patients. 

“Are you ok? You don’t look so good” Andrews asks stepping back

“I’m fine. I just walked in the door and you’re explaining 5 different things to me at once. Just give me a second” Neil snaps.


	4. Chapter 4

Claire and Shaun are on Dr. Lim’s service and they get an early morning trauma surgery in the ER. 

“Leah and I went to the Bamboo Lounge for karaoke last night. It was fun” Shaun says as they work on the patient.

“What’d you sing?” Claire asks with a smile

“Love Shack. It’s one of our favorites” Shaun answers. 

“How was your evening?” he asks

“I was at home just doing some straightening. Nothing exciting” Claire replies

“I finished up here and Dr. Melendez and I grabbed a burger from Crowley’s I think it was. I hadn’t tried it before but it was good” Dr. Lim replies

Claire does her best not to react at all. 

“I’ve been there. They have good cheese fries” Shaun says going along with the conversation.

Claire has never been so grateful to have alarms going off for a patient which caused an interruption in conversation. She chastised herself for it feeling guilty as they worked. The surgery turned out well though and she was thankful not to have it hanging over her head.

She went down to the cafeteria at lunch and grabbed a salad. A few minutes later Neil walked in and saw her.

“Hey” he smiled “how was surgery?” he asked taking a seat.

“Good” she replied taking a bite of her salad.

She seemed distant, “I was hoping to see you this morning but got bombarded by Andrews” Neil explained widening his eyes as he explained the several issues that were going on with patients.

“Hmm” Claire nodded

Shaun came over to the table and sat down beside Claire. 

“Dr. Melendez” he greeted as he sat down with his lunch.

“That looks good” Neil said looking at Shaun’s burger.

“Probably not as good as the one you and Dr. Lim had at Crowley’s last night though” Shaun replies taking a bite. 

Neil looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Claire just looked up, “Crowley’s does have great burgers” she says taking another bite of her salad.

“Dr Lim” Shaun says holding up his hand as he sees her walk into the cafeteria

“I’ve got to get going” Claire says throwing her napkin over her salad as Audrey walked over.

“Oh that burger looks good” she said looking at Shaun’s plate.

“That’s what Dr. Melendez said” Shaun replies.

Audrey laughs, “I’m not sure which was better, the burger or the whisky”

“Enjoy your lunch” Claire forces as smile as she gets up to leave.

“You grabbing lunch?” Audrey asks looking at Neil

“No, I’ve got a consult to get to” he says looking down at his phone. “I’ll see you guys later” he says as he gets up and leaves.

He comes out of the cafeteria and sees Claire headed towards the stairs. He walks quickly trying to catch up without being obvious to others. 

Once he’s in the stairwell he runs up a flight to catch up with her.

“Claire” he calls out as he closes the gap

She ignores him and considers exiting to get on the elevator but doesn’t

“Claire” he says again now right behind her.

“Dr. Melendez” she turns with a forced smile. 

“I got finished with surgery and was on my way out last night when Audrey, Dr. Lim, suggested we get a burger.” He explains

Claire shrugs her shoulders with a frown “You don’t have to explain it to me” she says as she turns and continues to walk.

“She’s my boss” he says still following her

“Very true. And your ex-girlfriend. Who coincidentally hasn’t felt the need to “get a burger” with you for several months but now, suddenly, that changes. Hmm” she tells him as she almost reaches the floor.

“I should have said something to you” he admits

Claire keeps walking, which only frustrates him.

“Will you please talk to me?” he asks

“There’s nothing to talk about, and even if there was, now isn’t the best time” she replies

Neil nods, and follows her onto the floor where she goes to check on a patient and he walks to his office.

Their afternoons are busy and they don’t interact much with her being on Dr. Lim’s service. He waits outside the hospital for her knowing she should be out soon. After a few minutes she comes out.

“Claire” he calls from the side

She looks over and walks towards him.

“Do you wanna get some dinner?” he asks glancing around

It takes all that’s in her not to reply “Is Audrey busy?” but she doesn’t because ultimately she’s not that petty. 

“Thanks, but I’m not really hungry tonight I had a snack earlier” she replies.

“Want to catch a movie?” he tries

“I think I’m just going to head home tonight, but thank you” she says as she goes to walk towards her car.

Neil took a deep breath. She was obviously more pissed off over this than he thought.


	5. Chapter 5

He gets home to his quiet, cold apartment and rest his arms on the counter wishing he could unto the previous day. Picking up his phone he text Claire he types out I’m sorry and then deletes it as he stares at the screen before sticking the phone in his pocket and grabbing his keys.

Claire sits at her table reading a medical article when she hears a knock on the door. As she opens it she sees Neil on the other side with flowers and laughs.

“I didn’t send them, I hand delivered them” he says holding them out.

“You shouldn’t have” she shakes her head as she takes them and sits them on the counter.

“I’m sorry” he tells her as she turns around and they’re nearly face to face and his lips brush against hers. “Please don’t be mad” he smiles

“I’m not mad” she says taking a step back

“It feels that way” he tells her

“I just think, that..” she pauses

“If you want me to talk to Dr. Lim I will.” He interjects

“No, no. please don’t” she quickly replies. 

“Then what?” he asks

“I think that maybe we’re just moving too fast and maybe we should slow down some” she answers 

“That’s insane” he replies “I understand that you’re mad and you have every right to be. That doesn’t mean we need to slow things down, we just have to work through it” he says his hand caressing the side of her face.

“What if we can’t?” she asks

“We can” he says lifting her chin and kissing her. 

She wants to stand her ground on this, but the way he draws her in is almost intoxicating. 

“Neil” she moans as he kisses her down her neck as she unbuttons his shirt.

He slips his hand in the front of the sweatpants she has on.

“Mmm” she tosses her head back

“You have no idea how badly I wanted to touch you all day” he says rubbing his fingers over her panties.

He moves down to his knees as she leans against the counter and pulls down the sweats and her panties.

“Damn you taste good” he says as he uses his tongue to tease her.

“ohhhhhh” she says biting her lip

He sucks and teases her wetness “you’ve got to stay still” he chuckles

“Ha. Your tongue may share your hands precision” she replies as he lifts one leg over his shoulder

“Mhmmm” his mouth moans against her

“Oh…mmmmm..F*ck” she says as her hands grab his hair and she rocks against his face.

“oh f*ck Neil!” she moans as he takes her other leg and puts it on his shoulder. 

He stands with his hands bracing her back and she goes back onto the counter.

“This is one hell of an apology” she laughs as she tries to gain control of the spasms running through her body.

“It’s just beginning” he grins as he lifts her and carries her to the bedroom.


	6. Chapter 6

Claire was in the room with a patient when Neil walked by and she could see him pause as he noticed she was in there. He pretended to have something to do standing at the nurse’s station with a view of her. Claire finished up and walked out a smile spreading on her lips as she knew what he was doing.

“Bowling tonight?” he asks so that only she hears.

“Sure” she smiles as she glances over at him. 

They don’t see each other too much during the day but it goes by fast. He is packing up to leave when Audrey stops in his office. 

“Hey, I need you for a consult,” she says sticking her head in the door.

“Uhm, I was just about to leave” he says hoping she will handle it

“Ok, but we have a consult and we need you in there” she replies annoyed.

“Give me just a minute” he says as he sits the bag down.

He picks up the phone to text Claire.

NM: Hey, I got called into a consult. I’ll be a little late, hopefully it doesn’t take long

Claire is already inside the bowling alley and had gotten their shoes when she saw the text.

“Ugh” she thinks as she sees it.

CB: Ok. I’m here

Nearly two hours later Claire is still waiting and is becoming annoyed. She checks the phone again to see if he’s texted her. 

Neil sits in a room with Audrey, Andrews and Glassman going over the treatment plan for a patient and discussing the options. He had hoped it would be a short consult, but this was way more involved. He tried not to continually look down at his watch. 

Audrey suggested they order in some dinner and they weren’t getting anywhere and it was getting late. Neil tried suggested the pick it up in the morning but that wasn’t an option according to Audrey. Glassman agreed, he wanted to get this done tonight.

Claire was tired of waiting and didn’t know how much longer he’d be so she gave some kids the lane and told them she pre-paid for two games before she turned in the shoes. She picked up the phone to text Neil.

CB: Hey, I guess your consult is lasting a while. I’ll see you tomorrow

Neil felt his phone buzz and pulled it out. He stepped outside to call her and apologize.

“Hey” Claire answered surprised that he was calling

“Hey, I’m sorry. This is lasting longer than I thought” he lamented

“I understand, it’s fine” Claire assured him

Audrey stepped out and asked him what he wanted to order for dinner so she could call it in before realizing he was on the phone.

Neil held up his hand to give him a minute.

“Oh, you’re doing a consult with Dr. Lim” Claire commented

“It’s Lim, Glassman and Andrews” he replied 

“Ah. Is whiskey involved too?” she asked rhetorically as she rolled her eyes.

“Cl..” he started when Lim came back out. 

He held up the number 4 to let her know that is what he wanted hoping she’d leave afterwards so he could finish his call.

“Do you want to also share the #6 with me?” she asked

“I’ll let you go so you can get back to…your order” Claire said disconnecting the call.

“Ugh” he huffed. “Yeah, that’s fine”

“Who were you talking to?” Audrey asked

“I just had to re-arrange some plans” Neil replied as he walked inside hoping she’d drop it.

He looked at his phone as he went back to the table.

NM: They are ordering in Chinese we should be done soon though.

He wanted to see if she responded and he saw the bubbles come up on the screen but then disappear. 

An hour later they came to a reasonable conclusion with how to proceed with the consult patient. Then he spent another 30 minutes listening to Audrey ramble although he couldn’t say what it was about.

When he finally left, he sent Claire a text to see if she was up but she didn’t reply. She had an early shift tomorrow, so he didn’t want to show up and wake her. Not to mention the fact that she was mad that he was stuck at the hospital with Audrey. He didn’t know how to fix that part, after all she was his boss and consults were something he had to do. Audrey didn’t seem to keen on the idea of him being close with Claire and bringing it up would be too great a risk to Claire’s career. 


	7. Chapter 7

The next day Claire had just stepped into the elevator when someone pushed the button causing it to open again.

She stepped back and waited, thinking about how if she had taken the stairs she’d probably be up there already. 

“Good Morning” Neil said seeing her

“Morning” she forced a smile

He stepped closer to her with a mischievous grin.

“I missed you” he told her in a low sexy voice.

Claire let out a small laugh. “You know sex isn’t going to solve everything, right?” she asked

Neil swept her hair back off her shoulder sending chills down her spine. “I wasn’t talking about sex, I was just talking about you” he says now standing beside her. 

She pursed her lips together and looked straight ahead. She would not be the first to give in and kiss him here. She would not. But it was difficult. 

“I’ll make it up to you tonight. I’ll make you dinner.” He offered

Claire laughed.

“C’mon. No sex” he told her causing her to look over surprised.

“I mean, unless you decide you want it” he clarified.

“You’re a hot mess.” She shook her head as the elevator doors opened

He had surgery today and she was down in the ER so they both stayed busy. She stopped by his office before leaving to let him know she’d be by later for dinner. She was sure to throw in, unless something comes up and you can’t make it. 

“Funny” he rolled his eyes. 

Neil hurried home to get some sauce ready for pasta. 

Opening it up, his eyes make their way from her heels to her face as she stands there in a slinky black dress that fell about mid-thigh.

“Hey” she smiled knowing she had surprised him. 

“I feel under dressed” he chuckled as he stood there in sweats and a fitted t-shirt.

“I like it” she smiled as she kissed him. He watched her as she walked towards the kitchen counter.

“Dinner is almost ready he said as he drained the pasta so that he cut put it in the oven with some cheese over the top to finish cooking. 

Claire came around the counter and wrapped her arms around his waist. “No rush” she whispered in his ear causing him to nearly drop the pot in the sink.

“You ok?” she asked with a smile

“Yeah. I’m good” he replied as he swallowed hard trying to concentrate putting everything together.

Claire sat at the end of the counter which caused her dress to move up a little higher, as she watched him finish. 

He kept glancing over and she knew it was getting to him.

“Wine?” he asked

“Sure” she smiled as he poured and handed her a glass

He ran his hand up her thigh as he looked at her face. Grinning she leaned forward and kissed him.

“I love you” he says as she pulls back.

She looks back at him surprised.

“I just need you to know that. I love you and you’re the only one I want” he says before he kisses her.

“Neil” she says in a breathy voice

“I love you too” she smiles.

“I know things are weird and awkward with Dr. Lim, but I need you to know there is nothing there” he assures her. 

“I’m sorry I hung up on you yesterday” She replies

“I get it, I do. And if the situation was reversed, I probably wouldn’t handle it as well as you do” he admits.

Claire laughs before pulling him close and kissing him again. She tugs at his shirt to pull it off and grins.

“You approve?” he chuckles

She bites her lip as she replies “yes” as she reaches for him to come closer. He lifts her off the counter and makes his way to the couch where he sits back with her on his lap. His hands rubbing up and down her thighs as he kisses her neck, down to her shoulder moving the strap of her dress down. His hands make their way up her dress.

“F*ck” he moans as she smiles knowing where this is going.

“You’re not wearing any f*cking panties” he says as she kisses his neck

“Nope” she says in his ear as she scrapes her teeth on his earlobe.

They are interrupted by the timer on the over going off.

“Ugh”he huffs as she grinds her hips against him.

Claire laughs, “C’mon you’re going to need your energy” she winks as she scoots off his lap

“OH I’ve got energy” he replies before getting up to grab the pasta from the oven.

The next week Claire is on Andrews service. Neil had a long surgery the first part of the week so they didn’t see each other. Then, she had a 36 hour shift and was exhausted. Then Neil had two surgeries in a row meaning they didn’t see each other for almost the whole week. He had finished up with his second surgery and was working on some notes when he got a page for a consult in room 732. 

“Seriously? Is there no one else available who can do it?” he thought out loud. He didn’t know where Murphy or Reznick were to send them. He grabs the chart out the outside of the door and walks in.

“Hi Miss Golightly, I’m Dr. Melendez” he says as he enters the room.

Looking up at the bed he sees Claire, in just a lab coat laying back on the bed.

He had told her once that he fantasized about her in just her lab coat, apparently she remembered.

“Nice to meet you Dr. Melendez” she replies with a grin.

“Wow” he says taking a deep breath.

She gets off the bed and walks towards him with a sexy saunter so he’s on the chair.

He runs his hands up from her waist to her breast before running his tongue over her nipple.

“mmmm” she moans as she undoes his belt buckle.

“We’ve got to hurry before the start looking for you” she says unfastening his button.

“I’ve missed you so much” he tells her as he pushes his pants and boxers down.

“F*ck!” she says in his ear “I’ve missed you” she moans as he thrust into her

She rides him bouncing up and down as he licks his lips watching her breast bounce as his hands rest on her hips. Leaning forward he licks the valley between them. Claire leans forward stifling a scream in the crook of his neck as they both find their find their release at the same time.

“I needed that” he chuckles

“Me too” she says in his ear before getting up from his lap. He looks at her again, standing there in the lab coat and heels.

“That may be the hottest thing I’ve ever seen” he tells her. 

She smiles when the file he had in her hand catches her eye. 

“Oh, you dropped this” she comments as she positions herself so that he gets the best view when she beds over and picks it up.

She can see the change in his breathing. “Oh you didn’t get the chance to examine me” she grins

He walks over. “The problem was in your back?” he asked as he stands behind her removing the lab coat.

“Lean forward” as she places her hands on the bed.

He runs his hands down her bar back.

“Looks good to me, but I’ll do some probing,” he says as she feels him enter her p*ssy.

“mmmm yeah” she moans 

He thrust into her and she stands to lean against his chest.

“F*ck baby” she moans, “Harder”

Neil obliges although he thinks he might lose his mind

“Yeah” she bites her hand to not be loud.

“Your p*ssy is so f*cking hot” he whispers in her ear and it causes her to go over the edge followed by him. 

They stood for a moment trying to compose themselves. 

“I thought the hospital was a no-no?” he asked kissing her shoulder.

“This was an exception since we haven’t gotten to see each other the entire week” she explains

“That was definitely worth the wait” he grins.


End file.
